An oft-recommended approach to handling a multi-dog household is to reinforce the ranking hierarchy — to feed the “alpha” dog first, the middle-ranking dog second, the low-ranking dog last; to greet or pet the “top” dog first, and so on.

But behaviorists are moving away from that technique, and most now advise reinforcing appropriate behavior without taking hierarchy into account. As scientists explore more about dog cognition and social behavior, we’re discovering that dog hierarchies are a lot more fluid and complex than the straight alpha - beta - omega designations once used for wolf packs might suggest.

In my experience, the average pet owner rarely understands dog behavior well enough to really know who the “top dog” is. Most think that the dog who fights and snarks at the others the most is the “top dog” — they’ve never even heard of “alpha wannabe’s” (dogs who are status seekers but are not confident enough to actually fulfill the role of “top dog”). So the wrong dog gets reinforced.

Dog hierarchies are also subject to change — especially when other dogs enter the mix (whether that’s adding a new dog to a household or simply having other dogs visiting).

I advise my clients that it doesn’t matter who’s “top dog” within the dog hierarchy, as long as they all defer to the humans in the house, and those humans have the ability to direct and control those dogs (whether that’s through management or good training).

Need some guidelines for good management and training for multi-dog household situations? I recommend “Feeling Outnumbered?” by Karen London and Patricia McConnell. (more…)